It has been a bumper year for British fruit, with grapes among the biggest
winners. But how best to grow your own?

Alex Valsecchi sounds like she’s in Italy. This is partly because she’s originally Italian, and her English comes fast and accented, but also because she’s standing in a vineyard when I call. Birds sing in the background and you can practically hear the sun beating down on her neck.

In fact, she’s in the Surrey hills, in the Albury Organic Vineyard, of which she is manager. Planted in 2009, the 13-hectare (five of vines) has quickly made a name for itself, and wine made here was served on the Queen’s barge during the Jubilee flotilla last year.

Out in the fields, however, 2012 was not so happy. The dismal summer meant a poor fruit crop and also limited the flower initiation for this year. Luckily the past six months have been much kinder, and 2013 is set to produce an excellent crop.

“We’re fully organic here, so it’s always a struggle because you’re limited in what you can use,” Alex says. “But it has been a good year. The delayed spring was really helpful: vines are vulnerable to late frosts, which is dangerous because it can burn the buds off and also kill the fruiting buds. The vine won’t die, but the new shoots often won’t have flowers so you can lose your whole crop. We missed that risk.

“Late springs can be a double-edged sword, however. Vines usually fruit 120 days after flowering, so with spring three weeks late that means you’re looking at late October or early November for harvesting, so there’s a risk of early winter frost. Luckily this year things have gone well, and we’re set to have a good crop. Because our vines were only planted four years ago we’re not at maximum production yet, but this year we should get about 20 tons of fruit. At full production that should be more like 30 tons of fruit, or six per hectare. The non-organic growers in England will get about 8-10 tons per hectare, but we’re at the outer limit of the climate for viticulture.”

Compare that to the Continent, where vineyards can produce up to 14 tons per hectare, and it’s obvious why home-grown wine sometimes struggles to compete. Fortunately, most gardeners don’t need to worry about yields and productivity. Given a sunny spot in a southerly garden, a vine can be a practical and elegant addition to a garden, with a delicious fruit. Before taking the role at Albury, Alex worked at RHS Wisley, in the fruit department, so is familiar with the woes of small-scale growers in Britain.

“You need to decide what kind of grape you want: are you looking to make a couple of bottles of wine, or do you just want a dessert grape. We make sparkling wine here, so we have to stick to the more traditional cultivars: pinot noir, chardonnay, et cetera. But for white wine I’d recommend 'Phoenix’, 'Orion’, or 'Ortega’ varieties. They’re quite hardy, and partially resistant to powdery and downy mildew, which vines suffer from in Britain. They can also be eaten as dessert grapes, although they have pips. Of the red varieties, 'Rondo’ and 'Regent’ are good, while 'Bacchus’ is a kind of blush.

“Dessert grapes can be difficult to grow outside in Britain,” she adds. “They’re best in a greenhouse. But if you have one, 'Muscat of Alexandria’ and 'Black Hamburg’ are quite reliable.”

Grapes need a sheltered site in the sun, ideally against a south or south-west facing wall. They’re not fussy about soil, provided it is free draining: sandy gravel over chalk is ideal. Plant out from late autumn until early spring, and mulch with chipped bark or well-rotted organic matter, and use fleeces to guard against frost. Space vines according to how you are training them. In a good year, even an untrained, unruly vine can produce abundant fruit, but keen viticulturists will usually use one of two systems.

Commercial growers tend to use the double Guyot system, where two main stems are trained along a wire between posts. For this, the vines should be about 1.5m (5ft) apart.

For gardeners looking to grow along a wall or in a glasshouse, the rod and spur system might be more appropriate. Wire should be stretched horizontally along the wall, 1ft (12in) apart. Vines should be planted six inches away from the wall or side of the glasshouse.

With both systems, vines should be pruned back hard in their first winter, leaving a single stem and two strong buds. In the following years, pinch out unwanted stems while encouraging the main ones.

Before you know it you’ll have one of the hardest-working plants in the garden: one that provides attractive greenery, shade, flowers, fruit, raisins, juice and – for the truly dedicated – delicious wine. Better than a petunia, at any rate.

The cold winter, hot summer and late-summer rain has all been brilliant for fruit, says Guy Barter, chief horticultural adviser to the RHS, in particular:

Blueberries. The warm, dry weather ripened them up and filled them with sugar and flavour.

Apples. The late-spring prevented frost damage to blossoms as they flowered late in the frost-risk period. The dry summer reduced disease levels, in wet seasons scab disease is potentially very damaging.

Figs. Despite the cold winter, a surprising number of figlets survived (the summer is short in Britain and usually only those figlets formed in autumn ripen). The hot weather also helped.

Plums. As with apples, the blossom, which opens before even apples, survived unscathed, and a heavy crop is being gathered.

Strawberries. The lack of rain in June/July led to minimal losses from rot. High levels of sunlight led to very sweet fruit.

Cherries hail from Asia Minor, where winters are cold and summers are hot. They thrived this year.

Send us your pictures

Do you have a garden vine? Email a high-res picture (300 dpi), with your name and address, to gardening@telegraph.co.uk and we’ll feature the best in a forthcoming gallery.